Christmas Holiday Ideas

Barbecued Butterflied Leg Of Lamb With Mint And Pocket Bread

9 Servings

Ingredients:

1    Leg of lamb (5-6 lb)*

3/4 c  Balsamic vinegar

1/3 c  Mint jelly

1/3 c  fresh mint leaves,Minced

Fresh mint sprigs (opt)

Salt

Pepper

Small pocket bread**

* – boned and trimmed of surface fat

** – or regular pocket bread, cut in half crosswise

Instructions:

1. Lay meat boned side up. Slash about halfway through thickest portions, as needed, and pull meat, patting cut edges down, to make the piece relatively even.

2. Place lamb in a 9×13″ pan. In a 1 1/2 quart pan over medium-high heat, stir vinegar with 1/3 cup mint jelly just until boiling. Stir in mint and pour evenly over lamb. Cover and chill 2 hours or up to a day. Turn meat over occasionally.

3. On firegrate in a barbecue, with a lid, ignite 50-60 charcoal briquets. When briquets are dotted with ash, in about 30 minutes, spread them into a single layer; scatter 10-12 more briquets over coals. Set grill 5-6″ above coals. Lift meat onto grill; reserve marinade. Put lid on barbecue and open vents.

4.Turn meat as needed to brown evenly; baste with marinade. Cook until thickest part of meat is done to your liking; for rare (140′ on a thermometer) in center of thickest part, allow about 40 minutes total.

Thinner sections will be well done.

5. Transfer lamb to a platter and let rest 5-10 minutes. Garnish with mint sprigs. Slice meat thin. Season to taste with mint jelly, salt, and pepper. Eat with knife and fork or tuck into pocket bread.